According to a PR Newswire release, almost two-thirds of those responding to a recent nation-wide commercial real estate survey that focused on applying green technologies to existing commercial buildings have budgeted funds for green building initiatives. Most of those surveyed also said they expect their investment in sustainability to increase next year.

Results of the survey, which was conducted by the Green Building Council, the Building Owners and Managers Association International and the Real Estate Media Division of ALM, were announced at the Greenbuild 2007 conference. The survey focused on the application of green methodologies and technologies in existing commercial buildings, and on the financial and marketing benefits of these efforts.

In response to survey questions about the marketing benefits and financial effects of green technologies, most respondents said that occupancy rates for their commercial green buildings run between 75 and 100 per cent. Nearly a quarter said they believe that these higher rates are driven by lessees’ desires to house their businesses in green buildings, which are no more expensive to maintain than non-green structures.

Though 61 percent of executive respondents reported that their green investments were profitable, only about half said they believed that local governments should mandate energy efficiency for commercial buildings. The remainder indicated that municipal mandates should apply only to new construction and be accompanied by financial or other incentives.

Real Estate Forum magazine will publish a complete survey report its November issue and the BOMA will do the same in its January/February 2008 issue. The full report is also online at online at http://www.globest.com/green.

In a related development the U.S. Green Building Council announced that former President Bill Clinton’s foundation and GE Real Estate are partnering to increase energy efficiency in hundreds of millions of square feet of public and private real estate. Buildings slated for improvements include Chicago’s Sears Tower and Merchandise Mart and schools and universities across the country.

Tags: commercial real estate, energy efficient buildings, green buildings, green construction, green real estate

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